017- AL-ISRĀʾ
THE NIGHT JOURNEY
Al-Isrāʾ
Al-Isrāʾ is a late Makkan sūrah, and most commentators consider the whole of it to have been revealed in Makkah (Āl, IJ). Some, however, consider vv. 73 and 76 to be Madinan, and others have suggested variously that vv. 60, 74–75, 80, and 107 may also have been revealed in Madinah (Āl, IJ, Q). The sūrah takes its name from the elliptical reference in the first verse to the Night Journey (isrāʾ) of the Prophet from Makkah to Jerusalem from where the Nocturnal Ascent (almiʿrāj) took place. This journey is likely to have taken place around the year 619, toward the end of the Prophet’s time in Makkah and just after the death of his beloved wife Khadījah and his uncle Abū Ṭālib, who had long sheltered him from the idolaters.
This Night Journey (isrāʾ) to Jerusalem and the Ascension (miʿrāj) of the Prophet from the site of the ancient Jewish Temple in that city through the seven heavens, where he encountered several Judeo-Christian prophets and finally came within two bows’ length of God Himself or nearer (53:9; see commentary on 53:7–18), is one of the most significant spiritual events in the Prophet’s life. From this time onward, the Islamic community saw itself as deeply connected to the Jewish and Christian prophetic heritage, and this is one of the reasons that Jerusalem was and is revered as a sacred city for Muslims, serving also as the direction of prayer for the Muslim community for several years thereafter, until 2/624.
The Prophet was also reportedly given the final form of the Islamic canonical prayer (ṣalāh) during his Ascension. This sūrah is also sometimes referred to as the Sūrat Banī Isrāʾīl (IJ), because vv. 2–8 discuss the Children of Israel and the historical destruction that came upon them and their Temple, or as Subḥān (“Glory”) after the opening word of the sūrah (Āl). This sūrah contains several themes and elements common to later Makkan sūrahs, including references to God’s Power over the natural world (vv. 66–70), repeated warnings to human beings about the coming of Divine Punishment either on earth or in the Hereafter (vv. 13–18, 58–59, 71–72), and criticism of the idolaters’ ascribing partners and daughters to God (vv. 39–41), their imperviousness to Quranic guidance (vv. 45–47), their disingenuous requests for miracles as proof of Muhammad’s prophethood (vv. 90–96), and their denial of the Resurrection and Final Judgment (vv. 49–52, 97–99).
In vv. 70–76, the Prophet is said to have nearly succumbed to the idolaters’ attempt to lead him away from the revelations that he had received, but that God made him firm. The sūrah also contains exhortations to the believers: in vv. 22–38, they are told to be virtuous and charitable and to avoid major sins, such as idolatry, murder, and adultery, as well as dishonesty, excessive curiosity, and pride; and in vv. 78–79, they are instructed to perform the mandatory prayers at different times of the day and night and the supererogatory night vigil. There are also some brief accounts of certain pre-Islamic prophets, including an account of Adam’s creation and fall (vv. 61–65) as well as Moses’ confrontation with Pharaoh and deliverance of the Israelites (vv. 101–4). Finally, the sūrah discusses various qualities of the Quran itself, including its benefits for humanity, its revelation by means of the Spirit, its use of parables, its division into sections, and its effects upon the believers (vv. 82–89; 105–9).
(source: “The Study Quran” a new translation and commentary by Seyyed Hossein Nasr)
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